Alex Kurtzman Says Universal's 'The Mummy' Wasn't What he Wanted it to Be

Alex Kurtzman probably made the right choice when he opted to exit the planned Universal Monsters Universe after the….disappointing…box office performance of his feature film starring Tom Cruise– The Mummy.

To be fair, there were certainly some good ideas contained within the film, like Russell Crowe as Henry Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. That casting was a BRILLIANT choice, and should have been the lead/introductory film. We digress.

Kurtzman has since taken over CBS All Access's Star Trek galaxy as showrunner for Star Trek: Discovery as well as working on two animated series and a brand-new continuation series about Star Trek: The Next Generation's Captain Jean Luc Picard, which will see Sir Patrick Stewart's return to the Federation fold.

In a recent chat with The Hollywood Reporter about all things Star Trek (and the upcoming adaptation of James Comey's tell-all), Kurtzman answered a question about The Mummy, wherein he revealed that the resulting film wasn't what he "wanted it to be":

The Hollywood Reporter: You directed The Mummy, which underperformed at the box office and was intended to launch Universal's slate of monster movies. Are you still involved in that?

Alex Kurtzman: The Mummy wasn't what I wanted it to be. I'm no longer involved in that and have no idea what's going on with it. I look back on it now [and] what felt painful at the time ended up being an incredible blessing for me. I learned that I need to follow my own instincts, and when I can't fully do that, I don't think I can succeed. Those films are beautiful because the monsters are broken characters, and we see ourselves in them. I hope those are the movies that they make; I want to see them.

Plans for additional entries in Universal's Monsters were canceled, indefinitely.

Needless to say, we're looking forward to seeing the new slate of Star Trek we'll be getting under Kurtzman's guidance.

Star Trek: Discovery returns for its second season on CBS All Access on January 17th 2019.

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Bleeding Cool News Editor Mary Anne Butler (Mab, for short) has been part of the fast-paced world of journalism since she was 15, getting her start in album reviews and live concert coverage for a nationally published (print) music magazine. She eventually transitioned to online media, writing for such sites as UGO/IGN, ComicsOnline, Geek Magazine, Ace of Geeks, Aggressive Comix (where she is still Editor-in-Chief), and most recently Bleeding Cool.

Over the past 10 years, she’s built a presence at conventions across the globe as a cosplayer (occasionally), photographer (constantly), panelist and moderator (mostly), and reporter (always).

Interviews, reviews, observations, breaking news, and objective reporting are the name of the game for the founder of Harkonnen Knife Fight, a Dune-themed band with an international presence.